Spatial information systems (spatial information system) allow for the creation, review, update, and deletion (CRUD) of data items which have the distinguishing characteristic of a spatial aspect. In general, spatial information systems include data repositories, which may include various levels of definition of the data within the data repositories. For example, the various levels of definition may provide attributes, boundaries, values and other defining aspects of the data. The spatial information system may otherwise be referred to as a spatial data model for storing and managing the data.
The data repositories may take the form of files, databases, or any other accessible means of storage and may include a repository for geo-spatial information. Further, the data repositories may be configured for accessibility and operational efficiency and where access to the data is accomplished through high-speed and electro-physical or photo-physical devices.
Each of the manners through which spatial information systems afford CRUD of parts of the model must account for the implicitly mentioned disconnection between the model (contained within the spatial information system) and the external artifacts which are being modeled. The disconnection between the model and the external artifact may cause or increase an amount of error and expense. The distance between point of model access and the modeled artifacts are generally a result of the physical actuality of the artifacts on one hand and the physical constraints, related to infrastructure requirements such as electrical transmission and environmental concerns, of computer systems on the other.
Mobile computing platforms such as laptops, hand held computing devices, and equivalent devices have been utilized to extend the mobility of the model into field environments, for example into environments that do not have computing infrastructure. By way of example, non-computing platforms of the model within the spatial information system may take the form of a blueprint, map, diagram, etc. The non-computing platforms may survive greater extremes of environmental concerns, are less expensive to generate and reproduce, may provide a larger display size and a higher resolution, and may be easier to use, which further reduces training costs.
A digital paper system includes a writing surface and a writing utensil in which the utensil knows its location in real time when it is marking on the surface. The writing surface may take the form of a digital tablet or digital paper, for example digital paper made by the Anoto Group AB and having an ANOTO® pattern. Various types of conventional digital pens include, but are not limited to, the MAXELL® digital pen, the NOKIA® digital pen, the LEAPFROG FLYFUSION® digital pen, the ANOTO® digital pen, and the LOGITECH® digital pen. Besides knowledge of placement location, some digital paper systems also maintain records of information like pressure or time as well as various “state” values such as color or width.
Similarly to technological devices like routers, repeaters, etc. which can be classified as existing within the physical layer of the internet protocol technology stack, the digital paper utensil and surface are a physical layer of the digital paper technology “stack”. These two physical artifacts are part of an interaction within which there is nothing but intrinsic and state information. A transmission layer exists above the physical, but the system requires a further layer above these, referred to as a semantic layer, in order to become useful.
The semantic layer provides a grounded regional description of the writing surface and any significant regions upon it, such as an 8.5″×11″ region that encompasses an entire page and may be used for freehand sketches. In more complex cases, the semantic layer may include a number of areas, with many possible relational aspects between them where each may have a rich individual, shared, or composed meaning to assign writing related to them. These regional areas are usually, though not necessarily, communicated to users via visual indication like the placement of a label next to a horizontal line or box upon which one is to write their name on a form.
Using these layers, the writing placed upon the writing surface with the utensil may be characterized with a myriad of possible placement schemes using either the regional definitions, semantic definitions, or their fusion and thereby assigning character according to the regional semantic definitions. The writing may be interpreted according to its characterization, where the interpretation may be determined through handwriting recognition, detecting a change of user intention, or the performance of some action.